Amid political stability and debt restructuring

The Colombo Bourse closed positive in 2024, with both benchmark indices reaching record highs, primarily driven by improved macroeconomic trends and strengthened confidence in the new mandate, as the All Share Price Index (ASPI) rose +50% YoY to 15,945 points, while the more liquid S&P SL20 index increased +58% YoY to 4,862 points.

Sri Lanka’s ASPI was the second-best performer compared to regional markets, trailing only behind Pakistan with a +50% YoY gain, said CT CLSA Securities (Pvt) Ltd in their annual report titled, ‘SRI LANKA 2024 IN NUMBERS.’

Average daily turnover increased to Rs. 2,233 million in 2024 (vs. Rs. 1,699 million in 2023) and the year ended with a total market capitalization of Rs. 5,696 billion. John Keells Holdings (JKH), Hatton National Bank-Vot (HNB-N) and Sampath Bank (SAMP) were top contributors to the total turnover in 2024.

A net foreign outflow of Rs. 9,895 million was recorded in 2024, with a net foreign inflow of Rs. 4,436mn in 2023. During the year, net foreign buying was seen in Commercial Bank of Ceylon-Vot (COMB-N, +Rs.860 million), WindForce (WIND, +Rs.764 million), and John Keells Holdings (JKH, +Rs.565 million), whilst net foreign selling was seen in LOLC Finance (LOFC, -Rs. 3,844 million), Ceylinco Holdings – Non-Vot (CINS-X, -Rs. 1,032 million) and Melstacorp (MELS, – Rs. 969 million).

CSE witnessed some of the largest delisting in 2024, while Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) on the exchange improved, delivering moderate returns for investors.

Meanwhile, the Colombo Bourse reached a new milestone on Thursday, (2) surpassing the 16,000 mark and closed the trading session at 16,349, gaining 404 points and marking a 2.53% increase from the previous day. During today’s trading session, most of the investor attention was focused on Blue-chip stocks and Banking sector shares.

For the week ended January 3, 2025, the Colombo Stock Exchange recorded a weekly turnover of Rs. 42.3 billion. The All Share Price Index (ASPI) posted a return of 3.31%, while the S&P SL20 showed a return of 4.15%, First Capital Research said.

“As per the previous week ended December 2024, the Colombo Stock Exchange recorded a weekly turnover of Rs. 30.8 billion. The All Share Price Index (ASPI) posted a return of 4.89%, while the S&P SL20 showed a return of 5.56%.”

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